Browns look into QB from Nevada

Colin Kaepernick, a strong-armed quarterback from the University of Nevada, worked out for the Browns on Monday, according to a report on Nationalfootballpost.com.

The Browns are not confirming any predraft visits. All team president Mike Holmgren has said is 30 potential draftees, the maximum allowed, will be in and out of team headquarters in Berea before the draft begins on April 28.

The Browns might have to use their second-round draft pick on Kaepernick if they are truly interested in him. He is rated seventh among quarterbacks by NFLDraftScout.com. He is intriguing because he completed 36 of 38 passes at his Pro Day workout on Friday, which was attended by 25 NFL teams, and because he threw the football 59 mph. That was more heat than Cam Newton of Auburn (56 mph), or Ryan Mallet of Arkansas (58) displayed.

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Kaepernick, 6-foot-5, 233 pounds, is a former major-league draft pick by the Chicago Cubs. They liked him because he could throw a fastball 94 mph.

Of course, there is more to being a quarterback than throwing a ball through a brick wall.

Kaepernick is the only player in NCAA history to pass for 10,000 yards and rush for 4,000 yards in his career, but NFL teams are wary because he had such great production in Nevada's pistol offense. He was in a spread formation most of the time.

"I had a chance to see him last summer at Peyton Manning's passing academy," NFL Network draft analyst Mike Mayock said during a conference call. "I spent three days watching the kid throw the ball with Peyton and Eli. He's got a huge arm. He's a great athlete, and he's got a big frame -- the kind of guy you want to buy into.

"A lot of people thought he was a third, fourth, fifth-rounder heading into the (2010) season. Now, he's probably a second-round type of guy."

During a news conference earlier this month, Holmgren said he was interested in quarterbacks other than Newton and Blaine Gabbert from Missouri, considered the top two quarterbacks in the draft.

Kaepernick is considered at least a year away from being ready to play in the NFL, but that doesn't mean he will last beyond the second round. Some teams, such as the Browns, can wait for him to develop.

The Browns have three quarterbacks under contract -- Colt McCoy, Seneca Wallace and Jake Delhomme.

McCoy has unanimous support from the front office and coaches and would be the starter if and when training camp begins. Wallace recently signed a three-year deal. Delhomme is in the final year of his contract.